


Into the Blue

by Tarlan



Series: Sentience [1]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Angst, Community: fanfic100, Drama, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-02-21
Updated: 2007-02-21
Packaged: 2017-10-21 00:45:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/219053
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarlan/pseuds/Tarlan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the eighth chevron locks, Rodney and John take a step into the blue of the Stargate and into the unknown.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Into the Blue

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the **FANFIC100** challenge Prompt 006. Hours

Rodney pushed the ZPM into place and snapped his fingers, pointing back at Siler. He grinned as the ZPM began to glow a bright orange having never doubted that he could integrate it with the Stargate in Cheyenne Mountain. He rubbed his hands together, accepting the twitch of a smile from Siler that was praise indeed from the normally dour-faced man. With long strides, he dashed away, heading up to the control room where Elizabeth was watching as the sixth chevron locked into place. Nervously, he took his place between her and O'Neill, trying to still the fear that churned in his gut because this was more than just a simple dialing sequence. The Stargate at the other end was in another galaxy, possibly in the mythical city of Atlantis.

As the final chevron--the magical eighth--locked into place, the wormhole formed with a whoosh and everyone began clapping wildly. Rodney chanced a glance towards Daniel, knowing he was seeing the vindication of Daniel's work in Antarctica and was not surprised to see pride battling with frustration. The MALP rolled slowly through the event horizon and ages seemed to pass before the first telemetry played back on the screen. Taking the empty seat next to the junior technician, Rodney checked everything thoroughly. He sighed unsteadily; it all checked out within human norms. Standing up, he faced Elizabeth and General O'Neill.

"Looks like we're not getting out of this."

They both looked to O'Neill, knowing he had the final say in all this.

"Dr. Weir, you have a go."

Her smile was radiant and Rodney knew this was the culmination of months of hard work and dreaming, wishing he could feel just as excited but all he sensed was that same churning in his gut from knowing he was about to step into the unknown and might never see Earth again. Paranoia reigned for a moment, freezing his feet to the floor before a curious look from O'Neill got him moving. He raced after Elizabeth, a wry smile tugging at his lips as she made sure Sumner knew who was in charge here. By the time he had shouldered into his pack and ensured that all his other equipment--laptop, cables, Naquadah generators--would be within the first batch to be taken through, Elizabeth was taking one last look towards the control room before she turned and stepped into the blue.

Another minute passed and he spent that time staring at the back of a man who had come to mean a lot to him over these past weeks. Sheppard had walked into the Chair room in the Antarctica outpost, sat down, and changed everything. The room had lit up, power thrumming beneath Rodney's feet, a solar system dancing over his head and stars in his eyes. His first reaction was annoyance and envy but then he had looked upon the face of the most beautiful man he had ever seen and had fallen completely and utterly. Rodney had never believed in love at first sight because that was the realm of chick flicks and soppy romance novels but he could not deny the way his heart had skipped a beat and his mind had gone from multi-tasking to single-track, focused solely on the wide, green-hazel eyes that looked to him for explanations. Until then, he had never had a problem talking to another man but words failed him when he tried to go beyond those necessary to further his work. He had babbled. In fact, he knew he had babbled almost incoherently but instead of eying him like he was a complete moron, Sheppard had smiled. Later that night, Rodney discovered that the bumbling and pathetic comments that marred his relationship with the gorgeous women who had attracted him, merely left Sheppard grinning rather than fuming. Instead of a slap round the face, Sheppard had dragged him into his temporary quarters and nailed him to the mattress, taking him so hard and yet so good that Rodney's ass had burned for days after.

Rodney thought it might be just a one night stand; a horny USAF major, deprived of company for months at a time in McMurdo, taking advantage of easy sex once it was on offer but it had not stopped there. With his rakish good looks and his ability to control the Ancient technology, plenty of men and women on the expedition gave Sheppard _come hither_ signs and yet he came to Rodney for what he wanted, barely giving the others a second glance. It was weird because Rodney had never felt so wanted before.

He wriggled slightly, feeling the burn from this morning's love making. Not even the fear of being caught in a homosexual act on a military base had prevented Sheppard from stealing into his room last night and claiming him again. He could still feel the weight of Sheppard's body on his back, feel the powerful thrusts that hit the right spot every time, making him see stars. He could still hear the soft grunts and the low, keening wail as Sheppard emptied himself into him, semen trickling down his inner thigh when Sheppard pulled out gently and collapsed on the narrow cot, mostly on top of him. He had not even cared that Sheppard's heavy weight could be damaging his back; too lost in sensation to truly care. All he had wanted to do was bask in the pleasure of yet another fantastic orgasm with a man who could have had any number of others falling at his feet, but had chosen him.

Afterwards, as the euphoria faded and the need for sleep grew, Sheppard had grasped his chin, forcing their eyes to meet, and made the first declaration of their short love affair.

"Be in the front group, Rodney. I don't want to go without you."

His thoughts returned to the present as O'Neill gave the order, "Expedition, move out."

"This is it," he murmured under his breath, watching as Sheppard stepped through.

Keeping his promise, Rodney made sure he was as close to the front as he could manage, the pressure of bodies behind him forcing him to keep going when he might have balked at the event horizon. A moment of disorientation and he was stepping into a new world. A stab of pain made him wince and then he was walking freely towards Sheppard, reading the immense relief in his lover's eyes that seemed a little out of place considering he had seen him only moments earlier. Then he noticed that no one had followed him.

Rodney turned, jaw dropping in confusion as most of the expedition was forced to the other side of the large atrium, contained within a force field. Only Carson and another of the soldiers stood free with Sheppard, and then Dr. Kusanagi and another soldier joined them. With shock, Rodney realized that these five were the ATA gene carriers. He looked back as small flares of light filled the containment field, releasing others who stood frozen in shock for a moment before shuffling towards Sheppard, while a slightly greater number of those still coming through the Stargate were released immediately.

Elizabeth was trapped at the front with Sumner, Ford and the other marines who had stepped through first; she was pushing ineffectively against the force field holding her in place. All the equipment was coming through now, being drawn further inside by some unseen force while those pushing the equipment were separated into the two groups. Beside him, Sheppard was almost yelling into his radio, telling the SGC to stop sending people and Rodney could see Sumner trying to contact the SGC too, but the frustration on Elizabeth's face and the continuing flow of personnel and equipment through the Stargate was evidence enough that he was having as much luck as Sheppard. When the last expedition member came through, the Stargate shut down abruptly leaving the two groups staring across the gate room at each other in silence. Further flashes of light separated four more from the contained group, drawing cries of shock from those still trapped, but Elizabeth and Sumner remained trapped.

"Rodney! The control room!"

Galvanized into action, Sheppard took the first step onto the majestic stairway leading upwards towards the gallery overlooking the Stargate. The stairs lit up beneath his feet and then beneath Rodney's as he followed swiftly. They reached the landing at the top of the first flight and turned to race up the remaining few steps, and that was when a bolt of pure energy hit him. Even as he cried out in shock and pain, Rodney could see most of the others in his group surrounded by white light too, and he fell into darkness with the sound of Sheppard's fear-filled voice calling his name.

***

When the Stargate shut down abruptly, Jack looked back up towards the control room, waiting for the technician to answer. A minute passed by with no response so Jack drew in a breath, intending to ask what the hell was going on but before he could speak, the gate began to spin.

"Incoming wormhole!" blared across the gate room.

"I can see that! Close the iris," he yelled, tensing as the iris shuttered across the Stargate with the grating sound of metal upon metal. Jack frowned as the next chevron locked into place and raced back to the control room. When it reached seven, he prepared to ask if there was an IDC but the gate carried on spinning, encoding an eighth symbol. "Atlantis?"

The radio message came through loud and clear as Sheppard sent through his IDC and ordered them to open the iris, his voice was tight as if he was barely holding back from panicking. Several thuds hit the shield as Jack gave the order, his mind already imagining the worst, which was confirmed by two more thuds before the iris opened far enough to disgorge expedition personnel safely.

"Clear them from the gate area!"

Marines dropped their P90s, leaving them hanging from their vests as they manhandled the sea of humans pouring back through the Stargate, shoving them out towards the corridor to make room for more returning personnel.

Jack shook his head in shock, the magnum of Champagne hanging heavy from his fingers, forgotten. "What the hell is going on? Get Sumner."

"Colonel Sumner, report." The technician looked up, shaking his head after the third attempt.

"Try Sheppard." But there was no response from him either.

Jack could only look down into the gate room in confusion as the familiar forms of Sumner and then Elizabeth Weir returned. The Stargate shut down again, leaving the control room in silence apart from the muffled cries from the gate room below. It was impossible to do an exact head count but at least a quarter of the expedition was missing. His eyes caught and held Elizabeth's as she stared back up at him from the top of the ramp, her eye wide with shock.

Five minutes later, they convened in the briefing room.

Daniel placed a coffee in front of her and Elizabeth reached for it, staring at the mug cradled in her hands for several long seconds before she shook off the horror that had left her unable to speak.

"What happened?" Jack asked gently, having never seen Elizabeth looking so lost and fragile until now. He was used to her no-nonsense business attitude, used to her trying to take control of every situation but she shook her head, clearly shaken. He looked to Sumner. "Colonel?"

"Sir. When we arrived, the room was dark and empty. No detectable life signs. My men began to spread out across the room but it was clear so we reported back." He took in a deep breath. "Everything changed as soon as Sheppard stepped through. The lights flared on and suddenly I couldn't move forward anymore and was physically pushed backwards by an unseen force. As more people came through, they were scanned and herded into the one area."

Jack leaned forward, "A containment field?"

"Most likely, sir. I tried to contact the SGC to tell them to stop sending people through. I could hear Sheppard calling too."

"We didn't receive any radio signals," he stated.

Elizabeth spoke at last. "I thought it was just the ATA gene it was after because it singled out first Major Sheppard and then Dr. Beckett and Corporal Eichmann, but then it scanned Dr. McKay and seemed to...to falter for a moment before releasing him too. After that, it seemed to broaden its parameters because it began separating out non-ATA personnel from both those coming in and those already in the containment field, as well as taking the remaining natural gene carriers."

"That's your answer. Gene *carriers*." Daniel glanced around the table but no one seemed to understand. "Carson mentioned that he was working on a gene therapy and figured the initial trials would have the greatest success on those carrying the recessive ATA gene."

"So?"

Daniel sighed softly at having to explain. "Rodney had the recessive gene."

Elizabeth's eyes widened. "So did Sergeant Stackhouse and a number of the others pulled out; Peter Grodin, Nurse Amla." She frowned. "But why didn't it take them from the outset? Why wait until Dr. McKay came through?"

Kavanagh huffed angrily. "Maybe it just got confused by the amount of ATA DNA up McKay's ass."

"I'm sorry!" Elizabeth turned angry eyes upon Kavanagh.

"Oh, come on. Everyone knows Sheppard was fucking him."

"This is not the place--"

"No wait!" Daniel held up a hand. "As gross as that sounds, if Atlantis has an artificial intelligence looking for Ancients and scanning every arrival for the gene then finding Sheppard's DNA on McKay might have made it reassess and widen its search parameters."

"That also might explain why it singled out several others just before sending the rest of us back." Elizabeth leaned forward, coffee forgotten. "Dr. Zelenka does *not* have the ATA gene in any form but I'm fairly certain he's in a relationship with Dr. Kusanagi, who is a natural gene carrier."

"Okay, can we leave the speculation for a moment," Jack ordered. "What happened to the ones left behind?"

Elizabeth shook her head. "I'm not sure. Rodney and Major Sheppard started up the stairs to see if they could override whatever was happening but they only made it as far as the first landing before all except the natural carriers and the four non-ATA were enveloped in a white light, Rodney included. They all... Most of them were screaming before they collapsed."

Sumner's lips tightened and Jack wondered whether part of his anger was now focused on the possible homosexual relationship between Sheppard and McKay. He knew Sumner had no liking for Sheppard, recalling one particular planning session where Sumner had made his objections known vociferously. Jack had overruled the objection because the expedition might have need of a strong gene carrier, and he was not planning to be that person.

"Sheppard caught McKay, and that's when the Stargate activated and started to push us back through."

Daniel's eyes filled with compassion. "Major Sheppard's transmission made it through with his IDC, telling us to open the iris...but we heard five distinct thumps before it opened fully."

Elizabeth's hand went to cover her mouth as she gasped in horror. Jack could understand because she had chosen every single scientist in the expedition, and had spoken to every soldier. He sighed, knowing they had lost some good people today.

"We need a head count. See who can be accounted for...one way or another."

***

John cradled Rodney's head in his lap as he sat on the first landing, staring down into the half-empty gate room. As many as fifty others were lying unconscious on the gate room floor and John had no idea why he and eight others were still standing. He brushed a hand through Rodney's damp hair, along his cheek, jaw line and down his throat until he could feel the steady pulse beneath his fingertips once more.

Rodney's cry of pain as the light enveloped him had stopped John in his tracks and he had barely managed to break Rodney's fall when the light released him, but at least his lover had not ended up tumbling down the deep flight of steps. Momentarily shocked as he scrabbled to find a pulse, with his fingers stained with the blood running from Rodney's nose in two small streams, he did not register the strange Stargate activating until the kawoosh startled him into looking down; eight chevrons glowed around the rim. As soon as he realized what was going to happen, he sent his IDC, desperately hoping the trapped people were not being sent back to Earth even though the alternatives were not worth thinking about. His radio call to the SGC had failed to stop the flow of people coming into Atlantis earlier and if the unwanted ones were being sent back to Earth then all he could do was hope that his message got through this time, before they all hit the closed iris.

When the gate shut down for a second time, John stared at it for over a minute before he noticed Beckett and the others moving through the unconscious bodies, checking vital signs and placing the unconscious into the recovery position. Carefully, John laid Rodney's head on the ground before dumping his back pack and drawing out a T-shirt that he could bundle up and use as a pillow. He used a pair of boxers to wipe away the worst of the blood from Rodney's face. When he was certain Rodney was as comfortable as he could be under the circumstances, John made his way back down to the lower level.

"What the hell happened here?"

Beckett looked up from where he was checking a young woman. He shook his head, blue eyes wide with shock. "I have no bloody idea!" He looked back down at his patient who had the same twin lines of blood staining her cheek. "They all seem to be alive but deeply unconscious. What about Rodney?"

"Same."

Beckett's blue eyes were filled with hope as they drifted towards the Stargate. "Do you think it sent the others home? Back to Earth?"

John faltered. "I--I don't know. Maybe. Yeah, I think so." He could recall the placement of the lights that glowed on the beautiful Stargate and needed to check the symbols to be certain but he suspected they would be the ones drilled into him as the Milky Way 'home' address.

"Oh, that's good."

"Yeah," John replied, deciding not to mention the closed iris on the SGC gate. For all he knew they were all dead but Beckett didn't need to hear that, and neither did the frightened little Japanese woman who was picking her way through the littered bodies, seeking reassurance often through stolen glances shared with a Czech scientist. The glances spoke volumes and John knew those two were more than friends or work colleagues; they were lovers.

"Have you any idea why we're here and...??" John glanced towards the Stargate.

"No. Though I haven't really had time to think about anything beyond..." Beckett looked across at the unconscious men and women. John looked too, trying to see a pattern but they were all different races, skin colors, shapes, sizes and genders. Some were soldiers and the rest were scientists. No trait stood out as different from the ones who were still standing untouched, or from the ones who were sent away.

"It's the gene," Beckett whispered, eyes even wider, filled with terrible knowledge.

The Czech stepped close enough to overhear. "I am Dr. Zelenka and I do not have the gene."

John looked around and then he saw it too. In his envy, Rodney had pointed out all the natural ATA gene carriers, and all of them were standing here staring back at him. Markham, Dr. Kusanagi, Dr. Beckett, Eichmann and him. John pointed to a frightened young woman who was seated on the ground holding the limp hand of one of the unconscious scientists.

"Do you have the gene?" She shook her head. He looked to the next one, and then to Corporal Franklin, gaining the same response. "Rodney has the recessive gene," he added softly, turning back to Beckett. "What about these others?"

He watched as Beckett cast his eye over the unconscious bodies and had his answer when he noticed the way Beckett's muscles straightened and tensed.

"Aye! They all have the recessive gene."

"Okay. So whatever it was that scanned us, sought out the ATA gene in whatever form...except for you four." John licked his lips as he concentrated on the problem, noticing the way Kusanagi crept up and slipped her hand into Zelenka's. He cocked his head to the side, only now noticing that the other three non-ATA were hovering over or sitting beside particular members of the expedition.

Lovers, he thought. Had their minds been scanned as well as their bodies? How else could it have known otherwise?

"Major Sheppard? We need to make these people more comfortable."

John nodded briskly, pushing aside his revelation for now as he glanced around the gate room. Everything had come through the Stargate as planned; all the equipment, ordnance and rations needed to sustain two hundred people for at least three months. They had brought as much as they could with them because there had never been any guarantee of finding food or even water here, let alone bedding. This city had been abandoned more than ten thousand years ago after all.

"Markham, Eichmann, with me. Let's go see where they put the sleeping bags. Then we'll set up a camp. Franklin, keep watch over the others."

He waited until Franklin had gained his feet, P90 grasped firmly as he took up a guard stance. John nodded, knowing all the soldiers had been handpicked for this expedition based on their skills and professionalism. He could count on all of them even though, technically, they were Sumner's men, but Sumner was no longer here and John was now the ranking officer.

It took a while to locate the sleeping bags from among the dozens of crates and banks of equipment and even longer to unseal them from the vacuum packs that had reduced them in size substantially. John left the others to cover the forty-six unconscious people on the lower level and took a bag up to where Rodney lay unmoving. He unzipped the bag and rolled Rodney inside gently, taking another moment to caress his lover's face and kiss his slack lips softly before heading back down to help with the others. He managed a couple of steps before Dr. Zelenka jogged up to join him.

"Major? Perhaps I could look at the control room and see if we can open a wormhole back to Earth."

John eyed Zelenka carefully, recalling Rodney mentioning him with grudging respect. "Okay, but be careful what you touch."

"I will need your assistance to initialize the control stations."

"Right," he drawled. With a quick nod to Markham, he let the sergeant know he was responsible for watching over the injured, and then John cast one more glance down at Rodney before heading up into the still darkened control room. The lights activated as soon as he drew close, with each station powering on and glowing beneath dust sheets that seemed to be made out of the thinnest metallic cloth. He startled when a large screen activated right beside him and took a deep breath, holding his hands out as if to say, I didn't touch it. Zelenka rushed forward, oblivious to John's concerns, pulling off covers and speaking rapidly in Czech, voice animated.

"This! This is the DHD." He pointed to an inverted triangle covered in strange symbols. "These are constellations. Dr. Jackson provided us with home address for Earth. Shall I try to dial home?"

John stepped up beside him and stayed his hand. "No. From what Rodney said, dialing another galaxy takes a lot of power. Let's just check how much we still have left before we go using it all up."

"Yes. Of course. You are right. Even if we could sustain wormhole, we are not in a position to carry forty-seven unconscious people through the Stargate."

"Exactly!"

Zelenka looked at him, eyes blinking huge behind his wire-rimmed glasses. "We need to interface our computers but..." He glanced towards Rodney, their expert in Ancient technology. "I think I could accomplish this but...if I am wrong?" He took off his glasses and wiped them on the corner of his science-blue shirt. "What should we do now?"

John looked across the bank of Ancient consoles and then down the stairs to first Rodney and then to the small group of people below.

"We break out some MREs and then we wait and see if our sleeping beauties awaken by themselves. In the meantime..." John went back to the first landing. "Corporal Eichmann? Give me a hand here. I want to have Dr. McKay down there with the others."

"Yes, sir."

"I could help you carry him," Zelenka stated in earnest.

"No offense, doc, but Rodney's no lightweight."

"Do not let him hear you say that. I fear he would not be pleased."

John chuckled at the thought, feeling some of the tension leave him. The big German soldier headed up the stairs, taking three steps at a time and picked up Rodney's sleeping-bag-encased legs while John lifted him from the shoulders. Taking great care, they descended to the lower level and settled Rodney on the ground at the base of the stairs. He nodded briskly as Eichmann stepped away, dropping to the floor beside Rodney just to check that he was still breathing.

Glancing at his wristwatch, John realized that only an hour had passed since they stepped into Atlantis but the events had proved draining. They had come across one batch of MREs while searching for the sleeping bags and John accepted his from the Japanese doctor with a grateful smile. He sank down onto the stairs and ate in silence, alternating his attention between the strange environment, the food, the others, and Rodney. By the time he had finished, he had reassessed their position and he spent the next two hours rearranging the supply crates to form a makeshift barricade around the sleepers, offering a modicum of protection should they not be alone in the city despite all signs to the contrary. Next John set up guard duty for him and the three other soldiers, working in pairs. It was still early according to his wristwatch but the fear and adrenaline rush had left them all tired so he ordered everyone to get some rest. John took the first watch with Eichmann, nodding as the German settled down on the far side of the sleepers to watch the ornate doorway that led into the darkened corridors beyond while John watched for movement on the gallery above.

As the long hours passed by slowly, John contented himself with occasional glances at his lover, smiling softly in relief when unconsciousness turned into sleep and Rodney began to snore softly. John gave him a gentle nudge with his foot and Rodney resettled, the snores turning to soft snuffly breaths that promised him Rodney was going to be just fine.

***

Sam Carter shook her head. "It's not a matter of being locked out. We simply don't have the power to connect to the Atlantis Stargate. The ZPM from the Outpost was already mostly depleted when it was used to power up the gate for the first attempt."

Jack frowned, sending an accusing look towards Daniel. "I thought you said it had enough power to run the outpost for a hundred years?"

"Opening a wormhole to another galaxy takes a lot more energy than running an outpost," Daniel stated softly. Elizabeth sighed as Jack stared hard at him because she and Daniel had led Jack to believe that it would not affect the outpost to that great an extent. Daniel seemed to read his thoughts. "There's still enough left to run the outpost for a few decades."

"Just not enough to open another wormhole to Atlantis," Sam added.

"So we need another one of these Zed...thingies?"

Elizabeth gave a sad smile, recalling Rodney's excited description of the ZPM back in Antarctica. Her smile faded as Carter almost paraphrased Daniel from that meeting.

"Zee, sir. McKay's Canadian."

Jack gave a tight smile and Elizabeth could see he was remembering that moment too. "So a Zee...thingie."

"Or we need to finish fitting the new Asgard hyperdrive technology onto the Daedalus or the Prometheus."

"And that would mean...?"

"We could fly there, sir."

Jack nodded. Flying things he could understand. Elizabeth knew he had started his USAF career as a test pilot and that he had used his piloting skills to save the Earth on a number of occasions. He rotated a finger. "How long?"

"Could take months before its fully tested and operational."

Elizabeth sank back into her seat in despair. Everyone connected to the Atlantis Expedition had known it might be a one way trip but she had never expected to be on the wrong side of the Stargate as they debated over the fate of fifty-six members, some of whom she had grown close to over the past months. By compiling lists from all those who returned safely, she had identified the five dead personnel and the ones still missing, left behind when the city forced the unwanted ones back through the Stargate. She knew Jack was holding onto the slender hope that the forty-seven with the recessive gene were still alive but all the reports from other witnesses seemed to agree. The city had attacked them, leaving them screaming in agony before they collapsed lifeless to the floor, blood trickling from their noses.

Elizabeth pursed her lips as she looked at Jack. She knew he had to consider both the best and the worst case scenario, that they were all still alive and stranded along with the other nine ATA and non-ATA who had been singled out from the mass of personnel. Desperately, she wanted to believe that too because there were so many bright and amazing people in that group. Natalie Dumais and Peter Grodin, Jenny Amla and Sergeant Stackhouse, whose first name she had not had time to learn. Then there was the brightest mind of all, Rodney.

Something Sam mentioned prodded at her and she frowned, leaning forward. "What about the Asgard?" Jack's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Do you think they would help?"

"Thor owes me for saving their new home world from the Replicators. I had planned on keeping hold of that IOU for a while but..." He nodded. "Let's see if we can contact them."

"Sir, even if the Asgard do agree to help, it could take them anywhere between 18 to 20 days to reach the co-ordinates given for Atlantis. Longer if they have to cross this galaxy first. That may be too late."

"I don't see that we have a choice," Daniel stated earnestly. "We don't have a ZPM to get there any faster."

"If it was an artificial intelligence that separated out those with the gene in some form...and their partners, then it might not mean them further harm," Elizabeth added. "And none of our equipment was returned so they have plenty of food and water. More than enough to last a year if-if they are all still alive. Longer if not."

Jack looked to Sam. "Do it...but kick a few butts over at Area 51 too. See if we can get those engines operational faster."

Sam nodded and left the briefing room. Elizabeth sighed in relief but she ought to have known Jack would never abandon anyone if it was possible to find a way to bring them home.

***

The lights in the gate room had dimmed while the others slept, simulating night, and John wondered if it was a reaction to their needs or to his inner wish for lower lighting. His ATA gene had affected a number of objects in Antarctica so this place could not be far different. His only hope was that he was not the cause of all this, recalling his frustration with Sumner only minutes before he stepped through into Atlantis. He knew Sumner had seen his record and had tried to have him thrown off the expedition. If it had not been for Rodney then he might have given Sumner what he wished for, but even Sumner's' disdain was worth bearing so long as he could be with Rodney, albeit covertly.

He watched as Markham picked his way across the sleeping bodies, waiting for him to take up position partway up the staircase before he nodded and settled down to sleep behind Rodney. Throughout his military career he had made every effort to avoid being seen with another man but, for the first time ever, he no longer cared. Most likely, he was stranded in another galaxy, light years from Earth and its petty regulations, and from anyone who actually gave a damn about what he and Rodney did together.

His lover had still to awaken but John could feel the heat of Rodney's body as he pressed up close, pushing aside the opening to the sleeping bag so he could wriggle his hands beneath the layers of clothing to touch warm, naked flesh. He nuzzled the fine hairs at the nape, breathing in the familiar scent of Rodney's shampoo and that underlying musk that was pure Rodney. He wrapped his arms tighter around Rodney's body as the memory crashed down upon him once more.

He recalled Rodney's cry of pain as the white light engulfed him, and the sight of blood pouring from his nose as he collapsed, the scene flickering through John's mind like a scene from a horror movie. For one terrible moment, he thought he had lost Rodney and, in that moment, he swore that if Rodney lived then he would not waste another minute worrying about his career and reputation. Let them give him a dishonorable discharge, he thought angrily. He was supposed to be here as a glorified on-off switch and he did not need a rank and serial number to perform that duty.

Planting a soft kiss on the nape of his lover's neck, John closed his eyes, drawing strength from the man held securely in his arms as he pushed aside all remaining concerns for just a few short hours and slept.

***

The first thing Rodney felt as he slowly awoke was the hard surface beneath him and he frowned groggily. The second thing he noticed was the warm, heavy weight wrapped around him, and he smiled, no longer so keen to open his eyes because he wanted to stay here with John for just a little longer. All too soon, John would awaken and sneak from his room before the Outpost corridors filled with the early morning risers. But why was his bed so hard? Why was he so tired?

Curiosity and discomfort won out and Rodney blinked open his heavy eyes, trying to make sense of the scene before him. The lights were low but this wasn't his room, this was not his bed, and he and John were not alone. He was lying on the floor with only a sleeping bag for a mattress and he could make out several more body shapes wrapped in sleeping bags alongside him. His face felt a little tight beneath his nose and along his cheek and chin, and he raised a trembling hand to investigate, scratching off flakes of dried skin or...he looked carefully. Was that dried blood?

John moved restlessly as Rodney sat upright in shock, the spinning room making him nauseous and limbs trembling from a debilitating fatigue. He closed his eyes until the worst of the sensation had passed and then he cracked open an eye and glanced around the room; he felt John's strong arms slip around him, holding him carefully. This wasn't Antarctica: it was Atlantis. Memories crashed back as he recalled the way he had walked through the Stargate looking for the lost city of the Ancients, nervous yet excited, only to be singled out from the others. He recalled the blinding agony that seemed to tear every molecule of his body apart before darkness claimed him, and then nothing more until this moment.

"What happened? Where are the rest of them?" John tightened his grip but Rodney pulled away weakly, twisting in John's arms until he could see his face. "Where's Elizabeth? Colonel Sumner?"

"Gone."

"Gone? Gone where?"

"It sent them back."

Horror filled him. "The iris," he whispered hoarsely, his imagination supplying the sound of all those people thudding into the closed iris, their molecules barely coalescing back into human form before they hit the back of the shield. All those brilliant scientists and soldiers lost.

"I sent my code through as soon as I realized what was going on, and told the SGC to open the iris. Maybe they heard me."

Rodney could see that John wanted to believe it, or wanted *him* to believe it, but both of them were realists. Rodney swallowed back his fear and horror as Carson knelt down beside him.

"Rodney? How are you feeling?"

Rodney could hear the warmth of friendship beneath the professional tone, and he could read the relief in Carson's eyes as he checked his pulse and took his temperature. In truth, he felt awful and filled with that terrible fatigue that dragged on his limbs now that the initial shock had worn off. Every part of his body was aching from his head down to his toes and he was grateful for John's strong arms providing comfort and support.

"Sick. Like a bad case of flu."

Carson did not seem surprised. "Aye, you and forty-six others, I'm sure." He felt a cup press against his mouth. "Will you take a wee sip of water?"

He tried but only managed a few small swallows but that seemed enough to appease Carson anyway. The cup was taken away and Rodney allowed John to lower him back down onto the makeshift bed and cover him with the sleeping bag. He fought against the urge to sleep, eyes opening wide when he felt soft lips press against his, watching through heavy eyelids as John drew back. Any doubt that John had kissed him faded as he caught Carson's heightened color and embarrassed glance away. Carson reached out and patted his shoulder through the sleeping bag.

"Get some sleep, Rodney."

For once, Rodney was more than willing to obey doctor's orders, and he drifted off the moment he closed his eyes.

***

"Major? A word please."

John pushed to his feet and drew Beckett aside, not wanting to disturb Rodney's sleep.

"Doc?"

"They all seem to be exhibiting the same symptoms so I don't think any of them are going to be mobile for at least another day or two."

"I see."

"No, I don't think you do. They can't sleep on the hard floor, not even with the sleeping bags wrapped under them." He pointed to the crates of equipment. "Within those supplies are inflatable mattresses, one for every person on the expedition because we could not guarantee there would be anything left behind here to sleep on."

John chewed on his lower lip, deep in thought as he wondered if they should risk setting up a more permanent camp. It made sense as John had no intention of pushing all this equipment back through the gate to Earth should they get a lock on the SGC, so it didn't matter if a quarter of the mattresses and sleeping bags were utilized in the interim. They would simply be discarded along with the unused equipment when the time came.

"Okay."

Within the hour, he had the three women inflating the mattresses, Markham and Franklin standing guard, while the rest of them resettled the sick into a more defensible corner of the gate room. Most of the sick remained oblivious to the motion around them but Rodney's eyelashes fluttered as he fought to surface. John whispered softly to him and smiled as Rodney drifted back down into sleep with a few barely audible grumbles. Once they were all settled, he reviewed the defenses, moving crates where they would offer the best protection before taking over guard duty with Eichmann. From the corner of his eye, he watched as Beckett organized the others into tending to the needs of the sick ones, seeing clear lines of exhaustion on the doctor's face, knowing he had taken no rest earlier as he moved from patient to patient. John gave Beckett another hour and then he ordered the man to rest, pushing him towards a spare mattress.

"I'm fine, Major."

"No, you're not. And you're not going to be any good to me or your patients if you're too tired. So get some sleep while you can. The others can handle them for a few hours."

He watched as the doctor lay down on the firm mattress next to Rodney's and then his gaze moved to his lover. The weight of responsibility hung heavy on John's shoulders as he sank down onto the step beside Rodney, his hand brushing through the fine hair and along the curve of an ear. He sighed heavily as he repositioned the P90 in his lap and looked up into the increasing darkness of the gallery hanging above them.

This place was supposed to have been the culmination of a lifetime of dreams for the men and women who had followed Elizabeth Weir from Earth.

He thought of the long talk he'd had with Zelenka earlier. John had known from the outset that this journey to the Pegasus galaxy could be a one way ticket. No one on Earth would be dialing in any time soon. In the best case scenario, Atlantis itself would have enough power for them to dial home but, otherwise, rescue could be many months away while they awaited the completion of Earth's first spaceships capable of intergalactic travel.

The scientist had found no other sign of life in the city but something had remained here over the millennia, something that had awoken when he stepped through the Stargate. Whether that something was malignant or benevolent remained to be seen.

As the lights dimmed further to simulate night, John hoped this dream of Weir's would not become their nightmare.

END


End file.
